By Lorna Reese

Special to the Weekly

A child clutches a “new” toy; an islander patiently comes up with the perfect inventory of parts for a new project; cyclists soaked to the skin find ponchos; an island chef takes home a beautiful stainless steel stockpot and gorgeous maple chopping block.

These are the kind of sights that delight Micki Ryan, who set up the volunteer program and serves as volunteer coordinator for the Lopez Solid Waste Disposal District. Ryan also puts in time every Wednesday at the Take It or Leave It. Currently, 75-plus Lopezians have volunteered at the dump; the goal is 100.

“They love what they’re doing,” says Ryan, “especially the recycling helpers. We have several couples and families and all ages from teens to 80s. One volunteer doesn’t even live here full time. Every single one of them is more waste-savvy than I am. But I’m learning!”

Each volunteer signs up at lopezsolidwaste.org to put in at least one two-hour shift a month. Even with 75 volunteers – plus LSWDD and Solid Waste Alternatives Program board and members – more volunteers are needed to prevent some shifts being understaffed or volunteers having to work second shifts.

The first couple of weeks were challenging for volunteers and for donors, Ryan confesses, as everyone needed to get re-accustomed to recycling and especially to a more managed Take it or Leave It. Volunteers now sort through donations to be sure they’re suitable for TIOLI, so visitors will find a cleaner, more organized site and better quality items on the shelves. Neil Hanson and Ona Blue continue together, as they have for years, to put in volunteer hours every week sorting, cleaning and arranging items for “shoppers’” comfort.

However, the cleaned-up, revitalized TIOLI is just one aspect of transformation at the dump. Changes in recycling have been major, too. Hanson, facility manager and one of two paid employees, has worked there for 22 years. During this time, he developed a vision for achieving Zero Waste by diverting materials from the landfill by re-use, repurposing and recycling. Hanson is constantly researching new receivers or buyers for Lopez reclaimable waste. This effort extends to TIOLI as well, where visitors will now see large bins added for fiber reclamation — clothing, textiles, shoes and belts that cannot be re-used.

With the creation of the Lopez Solid Waste Disposal District, the Lopez Dump has become a true community-wide project, according to Sarah Eppenbach, chairwoman of the SWAP board. She sees this reflected in the level of commitment from the 75-plus volunteers working outdoors rain or shine.

“Volunteer commitment extends beyond board members and the cadre of orange-vested volunteers working on-site,” she explains. “Povl Lasbo spent hundreds of hours, creating the cash management and accounting system used at the pay kiosk as well as the interactive online sign-up calendar used by volunteers. Bill Clemens, another technical wizard, installed all the systems and continues to monitor the computer, power supply and Internet connection. He also spent countless hours documenting Povl’s programs and training the staff and board members.

“Ann Palmer set up the public website,  www.lopezsolidwaste.org, shared by LSWDD and SWAP and continues to volunteer her time as webmaster,” Eppenbach says. “Recently, the school shop offered to help, too, by building rummage tables. There are really too many people to name but it’s a powerful statement about how strongly Lopezians feel about our dump complex and about being good stewards of our island.”

Volunteers have been learning a lot.

“The enthusiasm, knowledge and time devoted by the board and committee members is impressive,” says Linda Noreen who volunteers in recycling. “Page Read, chairman of LSWDD, seems to be there every day teaching us how to be more efficient in our time and effort, but he also takes the time to explain how much it costs to dispose of co-mingled garbage and why Manager Neil Hansen can get a better price when recyclables are clean and placed in the correct bins.”

The two-hour shifts fly by, Noreen adds, with customers also eager to learn or relearn why certain procedures are required. Aluminum foil must be clean and flattened, for example, because of an incident where a foil ball contained a turkey.

Denise McIntosh Clark learned “how important it is to bring only useable goods to TIOLI; last year it cost $25,000 to remove unacceptable donations, which included liquids, hazardous waste, broken items, moldy shoes and threadbare clothing.”

“I’m amazed how much ‘stuff’ is processed through in one shift,” says volunteer Joanne Bryant. “We are generating such community spirit by keeping our own system, and improving on it.  This can-do attitude benefits us all.”

For volunteer Pete Gandini failure is not an option.

“We’ve taken on a responsibility and we’ll show the rest of the county how a well-run and efficient dump can be operated,” he says, “But we need more people to join, so I encourage everyone to sign up and be a part of this.”

Anyone wanting to volunteer, visit www.lopezsolidwaste.org and follow links to the Volunteer Contact Form.  Pick up a paper application at the library  under the dump recruitment poster of Uncle Sam.